I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors & on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile & the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout & then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!



-------------------------------------

On 11/4/2011 12:31 PM, HelpMe wrote:




I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors& on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile& the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout& then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

corners are especially bad for grout cracks. they should have been
caulked instead. you probably need to remove the grout and caulk to get
a final solution.

On 11/4/2011 3:43 PM, chaniarts wrote:
On 11/4/2011 12:31 PM, HelpMe wrote:




I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors& on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile& the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout& then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

corners are especially bad for grout cracks. they should have been
caulked instead. you probably need to remove the grout and caulk to get
a final solution.


No need to go overboard removing the grout...just enough for the caulk
to grab into (it sticks to the surface of the tile ennyhoo). Joints
where walls meet walls or floors should be caulked because the walls
expand/contract enough to crack grout; caulk flexes.

On Nov 4, 4:50*pm, Norminn wrote:
On 11/4/2011 3:43 PM, chaniarts wrote:









On 11/4/2011 12:31 PM, HelpMe wrote:

I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors& on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile& the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout& then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

corners are especially bad for grout cracks. they should have been
caulked instead. you probably need to remove the grout and caulk to get
a final solution.

No need to go overboard removing the grout...just enough for the caulk
to grab into (it sticks to the surface of the tile ennyhoo).

Gotta call you on that one. The caulk will stick, but it won't be
long lasting and it won't be gua-ran-teed to be 100% waterproof.
It's not all that much work to remove the old grout and clean out the
joint. Do it right, do it once.

R

On 11/4/2011 6:13 PM, RicodJour wrote:
On Nov 4, 4:50 pm, wrote:
On 11/4/2011 3:43 PM, chaniarts wrote:









On 11/4/2011 12:31 PM, HelpMe wrote:

I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors& on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile& the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout& then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

corners are especially bad for grout cracks. they should have been
caulked instead. you probably need to remove the grout and caulk to get
a final solution.

No need to go overboard removing the grout...just enough for the caulk
to grab into (it sticks to the surface of the tile ennyhoo).

Gotta call you on that one. The caulk will stick, but it won't be
long lasting and it won't be gua-ran-teed to be 100% waterproof.
It's not all that much work to remove the old grout and clean out the
joint. Do it right, do it once.

R
Gotta call you on that one. My caulk will stick for a long time...clean
the meeting surfaces obsessively, wipe with full strength bleach, let
dry, caulk. Done (unless I smudge it and have to do it over) )

On Nov 4, 8:34 pm, Norminn wrote:
On 11/4/2011 6:13 PM, RicodJour wrote:
On Nov 4, 4:50 pm, wrote:
On 11/4/2011 3:43 PM, chaniarts wrote:

corners are especially bad for grout cracks. they should have been
caulked instead. you probably need to remove the grout and caulk to get
a final solution.

No need to go overboard removing the grout...just enough for the caulk
to grab into (it sticks to the surface of the tile ennyhoo).

Gotta call you on that one. The caulk will stick, but it won't be
long lasting and it won't be gua-ran-teed to be 100% waterproof.
It's not all that much work to remove the old grout and clean out the
joint. Do it right, do it once.


Gotta call you on that one. My caulk will stick for a long time...clean
the meeting surfaces obsessively, wipe with full strength bleach, let
dry, caulk. Done (unless I smudge it and have to do it over) )

You're not arguing with me, you're arguing with the physical
properties of caulk. Caulk won't stretch in every direction equally
regardless of area of adhesion and thickness. Unless you control the
joint width and depth, and insure that the narrow dimension is normal
to the direction that the joint will move, the caulk will fail.
Murphy's Law requires it to fail in a way that is most unfavorable to
your desired outcome - waterproofing.

Some people just goober on the caulk right over the grout and bridge
the joint. That may work for a while, but it's a non-starter if you
want the job to last and don't want the caulk job to yell out,
"Amateur!" Caulked joints should be almost indistinguishable from a
grout line - uniform along it's length, color matched, and as close to
the standard grout line width as possible.

R

HelpMe wrote:
I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors & on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles.
The grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the
grout meets the tile (both the wall tile & the floor tile). How to I
repair this. Remove old grout & then caulk? Can I just caulk over
the grout that is pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk
over the cracking areas? Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!


Since you already know the grout won't last, regrouting doesn't ssem like a good
option. The best choice would be to remove the corner grout, then caulk with a
silicone caulk. A good tile shop may be able to help you match the grout you
have with the proper caulk. They have 100% silicone caulks that match a portion
of the grout colors they sell.

On Nov 4, 4:40*pm, "Bob F" wrote:
HelpMe wrote:
I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors & on
the walls. *It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles.
The grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the
grout meets the tile (both the wall tile & the floor tile). *How to I
repair this. Remove old grout & then caulk? *Can I just caulk over
the grout that is pulling from the tile? *Put clear silicone caulk
over the cracking areas? Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

Since you already know the grout won't last, regrouting doesn't ssem like a good
option. The best choice would be to remove the corner grout, then caulk with a
silicone caulk. A good tile shop may be able to help you match the grout you
have with the proper caulk. They have 100% silicone caulks that match a portion
of the grout colors they sell.

The essential difference is that caulk remains flexible.
The floor and walls will always have some slight movement
from either standing on the floor or heating/cooling cycles,
etc..

On Saturday, 5 November 2011 05:31:52 UTC+10, HelpMe wrote:
I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors & on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile & the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout & then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!



-------------------------------------

Want to know the bad news? Because no one else is saying it.
OK, I have long experience with shower areas in Austalia at least, and
the vast majority of wall/floor joints are grouted.
This is because of longevity.
If you put caulk there, it won't last. Neither will silicone, and if silicone is smeared on it will end up looking like a permanent steak of dirt
after accumulating shower grime for years, it will be the only thing you can't clean.
Your best bet is to simply rub some more grout in there.
Problem fixed.

If you have a lot of movement in the house, you might want to try a flexible grout additive.
If you want it to last 100 years try an epoxy grout.

All of these solutions (caulk, grout & silicone) are presuming that the original gap was 2mm to 3mm between the floor and wall.

So that's my advice.
Whatever you put in, be prepared to replace it.
But I like grout.

(PS. porosity is not an issue with an underlying waterproofing membrane and
the appropriate angle of drainage.)

wrote in message ...
On Saturday, 5 November 2011 05:31:52 UTC+10, HelpMe wrote:
I have a 2 year old shower that is ceramic tile on the floors & on
the walls. It is grouted where the wall tiles meet the floor tiles. The
grout on two of these wall/floor areas is cracking where the grout meets
the tile (both the wall tile & the floor tile). How to I repair this.
Remove old grout & then caulk? Can I just caulk over the grout that is
pulling from the tile? Put clear silicone caulk over the cracking areas?
Regrout this area?
Please HELP !!!

-------------------------------------

Want to know the bad news? Because no one else is saying it.
OK, I have long experience with shower areas in Austalia at least, and
the vast majority of wall/floor joints are grouted.
This is because of longevity.
If you put caulk there, it won't last. Neither will silicone, and if silicone is smeared on it will end up looking like a permanent steak of dirt
after accumulating shower grime for years, it will be the only thing you can't clean.
Your best bet is to simply rub some more grout in there.
Problem fixed.

If you have a lot of movement in the house, you might want to try a flexible grout additive.
If you want it to last 100 years try an epoxy grout.

All of these solutions (caulk, grout & silicone) are presuming that the original gap was 2mm to 3mm between the floor and wall.

So that's my advice.
Whatever you put in, be prepared to replace it.
But I like grout.

(PS. porosity is not an issue with an underlying waterproofing membrane and
the appropriate angle of drainage.)

Thanks for this info. Same situation here. I put silicone caulk on a few years ago and sealed the crack but looks bad, like you said.

What's a good way to remove the old caulk? Is it necessary to try and scrape out the caulk that's inside the cracks?